Argentine rock-singing libertarian shakes up presidential election race


FILE PHOTO: Argentine presidential candidate Javier Milei of La Libertad Avanza alliance, looks on during the closing event of his electoral campaign ahead of the primaries, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 7, 2023. REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentina's presidential election race has an unpredictable X factor: Javier Milei, a fiery and wild-haired libertarian who wears leather jackets, belts out rock songs to his supporters, and wants to purge politics of what he calls "thieves."

The 52-year-old economist, whose brash showmanship has shades of former U.S. president Donald Trump or Italy's Beppe Grillo, has shot from relative obscurity a few years ago to now polling at one-fifth of the likely vote, with his combative, rock-style rallies appealing to voters angry at 116% inflation and rising poverty.

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